Past Events

Our Paddling Together art exhibit inspired us to get out on the water. Check out the beauty of nature right in the city.

Join us in church on Sunday morning and then we'll leave together. Bring something for lunch and we'll leave St. Anne's around 12:30. We will rent canoes starting from Old Mill subway station for the afternoon. Approximate cost per person is $25 for the canoe rental.

Canoe rental is arranged in advance, so we need to know if you're coming! Please send an email, or sign up in church at the Action Table.

Join the Proud Anglicans Team for the Pride & Remembrance Run: 5K running or 3K walking.

This year's run supports the following beneficiaries:

The Canadian Lesbian Gay Archives acquires, preserves and provides public access to material on the history of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer committees in Canada. The CLGA is the largest independent LGBTQ+ archive in the world.

LGBT Youth Line is a Queer, Trans, Two-Spirit youth-led organization that affirms and supports the experiences of youth (29 and under) across Ontario. We do this by: providing anonymous peer support and referrals; training youth to provide support to other youth; and providing resources so youth can make informed decisions.

The Transition-Related Surgery Compassionate Fund at Women’s College Hospital will help offset the cost of select transition-related surgeries (TRS) not covered by OHIP for eligible patients.

It's a fun morning with frappuccinos to enjoy as we hang out together.

You can sign up as an individual or as part of our team, called Proud Anglicans. Proud Anglicans brings together people from many parishes that affirm LGBTQ relationships, and it's great to get to know each other. Whether you identify with a letter in the acronym or as an ally, you're welcome to be on our team!

The graphic above appeared in my social media feed this week, an astonishing reminder that it has already been five years since Archbishop Colin Johnson granted St. Anne's the local option to bless the relationships of same-sex couples. Since that milestone, our local option has been upgraded to allow us to offer same-sex marriage. We await the decision of General Synod, our national decision-making body, in June 2019, on our continued local option status. The vote at the previous General Synod in 2016 was dramatically close, and the canons of the Anglican Church of Canada require that this vote be repeated at the next General Synod in order to become the permanent policy of our denomination.

"The Church is on a Journey" graphic is from an article that is worth reading! Have a look.

How we got here is worth a review. The St. Anne's congregation expressed interest in becoming more inclusive about 15 years ago. We had to demonstrate to the Archbishop that we had built a broad consensus of our community and especially that we had not bullied our community down this road. This process required study and conversation. Our Discernment Sunday took the form of a Café Eucharist with round tables for discussion, and presentations on scripture and theology, the recent history of lesbian and gay liberation movements, and the "lived experience" of gay and lesbian members of congregation.

We were delighted to present our process to the Diocese and to receive our designation. We put the rainbow on the church sign. We walk with the Proud Anglicans group in the Pride Parade. We run/walk in the Pride & Remembrance Run. We have not celebrated any same-sex marriages, though the representation of gays and lesbians in our community has increased.

We have been exploring the idea of Sanctuary - for those who have been harmed, for those who are questioning and looking for a safe place to ask questions and, with God's help, to find their way.

Our St. Anne's Safe Church process has raised deeper questions about safe space. It's time for a review: Is St. Anne's a safe space? Are we welcoming, accepting, or affirming? How did we get here? What do we need in order to continue to be Safe Space going forward?

The Rev. Canon Gary van der Meer

May 3, 2018

Please join us for a roundtable conversation and review on Sunday, May 13 following the worship service in the Skey Room (Chapel). Whether you identify yourself by one of the letters in the acronym LGBTQ or as a "straight ally," we invite you into the conversation.

St. Anne's offers a monthly tour on the first Sunday of each month following the worship service.

The tour includes the story of how St. Anne's came to have the architecture of the Byzantine Revival, the artworks of the Group of Seven, and a musical history that ranges from the complete works of Gilbert & Sullivan to Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar.

We are offering an extra tour this month especially to invite people who came to see Jesus Christ Superstar - and everyone is welcome.

The tour is approximately 45 minutes, guided by a tour leader who knows all the best stories. You are welcome to take pictures!

You are welcome to attend the church service at 10:30 and stay on for the tour, or to come into the church as the liturgy concludes.

Welcome to St. Anne's! Our mission is to be Sanctuary for you as you find your way. Holy Week is an ideal time to reflect on your life in light of these stories of Jesus. Let the drama and music guide you to new insights about faith, community, and the love of God.

It's easy to get to St. Anne's, and a safe inclusive space for everyone.

Bring your bicycle to church on Sunday, May 27. We will gather our bikes in the parking lot for a blessing, and then leave St. Anne's together for a leisurely ride on the Waterfront Trail. Bring some lunch to eat before we depart at 12:30 p.m.

Ride for the Rouge - this spring's first bike day

The Bruce Trail - this spring's hike day

Coming Soon:

Sunday, June 10: Canoe the Humber

As an addition to our Paddling Together art events last year, we added a real canoe day, and it was so wonderful we're doing it again. After church, we'll drive together to Old Mill subway station to rent canoes for a ride on the Humber River. The wildlife is amazing, right in the city. Approximate cost per person, $25.00. Learn more about canoeing on the Humber.

Saturday, June 23: Pride & Remembrance Run

We join the team Proud Anglicans every year to celebrate that St. Anne's is an LGBTQ+ Affirming Church! Run 5K or walk 3K. This year's run supports: Transition-Related Surgery Compassionate Fund at Women's College Hospital, Canadian Gay & Lesbian Archives Digital Hub Project, and other charities. And join us to walk with the Proud Anglicans in the Pride Parade on Sunday, June 24. Learn more about the Pride Run.

And coming this Fall:

Fall Excursion to the Wye Marsh for the Bird Migration. This will be a full-day excursion on a Saturday in late September or early October. Watch our events page!

Getting out in the Great Outdoors is one of the ways St. Anne's celebrates God's blessing of the earth. We hike, bike, canoe, and more - and we welcome new friends.

St. Anne’s Music & Drama Society, in its 55th year, will present Gilbert & Sullivan’s Ruddigore from January 26 to February 4, 2018 in the Parish Hall, 651 Dufferin Street.

"Ruddigore, or The Witch's Curse" was the 10th collaboration between Gilbert and Sullivan. The "supernatural opera" opened on January 21, 1887 at the Savoy Theatre and ran for 288 performances.

The opera is a parody of the stock melodrama — the villain who carries off the maiden; the priggishly good-mannered poor-but-virtuous-heroine; the hero in disguise, and his faithful old retainer who dreams of their former glory days; the snake in the grass who claims to be following his heart; the wild, mad girl; the swagger of fire-eating patriotism; ghosts coming to life to enforce a curse; and so forth.

But as one critic noted, Gilbert turns the moral absolutes of melodrama upside down: Good becomes bad, bad becomes good, and heroes take the easy way out.

MADS performances are professionally costumed, skillfully staged with a large chorus, and musically enhanced by an 18-piece orchestra. Tickets are available at 416.922.4415.

There will be four evening and four matinee performances at 7:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. respectively.

Friday, January 26, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, January 27, 2:00 p.m.

Saturday, January 27, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, January 28, 2:00 p.m.

Thursday, February 1, 7:30 p.m.

Friday, February 2, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, February 3, 2:00 p.m.

Sunday, February 4, 2:00 p.m.

For further information, please emailroyschatz@bell.net. You may also view or download an order form, which gives information about prices and timing, by visiting our downloads page (scroll down to the Music at St. Anne's section).

We invite you to join us at St. Anne's for Christmas! Here is the schedule:

Sunday, December 24, 10:30 a.m.

Fourth Sunday of Advent: Lighting of all the Advent Candles as the scripture texts summarize a world in readiness for a coming Messiah. This is a one-hour service. Refreshments following the service in the Skey Room.

Sunday, December 24, 5:30 p.m.

Early Christmas Eve: This all-ages-friendly service includes favourite Christmas Carols and Communion. The large creche figures assist us by travelling down the aisle as we tell the story.

Sunday, December 24, 10:30 p.m.

Late Christmas Eve: A candlelight choral celebration of the Christmas story, with favourite Christmas carols and beautiful music by the choir and St. Anne's Brass Quartet.

Monday, December 25, 10:30 a.m.

Christmas Day: Christmas Day Communion with a sing-along of favourite carols. Help us choose which ones to sing! Christmas cake and Starbucks coffee during the service.

Sunday, December 31, 10:30 a.m.

First Sunday of Christmas: The rest of the Christmas story, including the blessing of the child in the temple and the arrival of the Magi - people of wisdom from the east to recognize the Holy Birth.